Daily Scripture: Acts 2:1 The festival of Shavu‘ot arrived, and the believers all gathered together in one place. 2 Suddenly there came a sound from the sky like the roar of a violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire, which separated and came to rest on each one of them. 4 They were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and began to talk in different languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.14 Then Kefa stood up with the Eleven and raised his voice to address them: “You Judeans, and all of you staying here in Yerushalayim! Let me tell you what this means! Listen carefully to me!
15 “These people ar en’t drunk, as you suppose — it’s only nine in the morning. 16 No, this is what was spoken about through the prophet Yo’el:
17 ‘Adonai says:
“In the Last Days,
I will pour out from my Spirit upon everyone.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
your old men will dream dreams.22 “Men of Isra’el! Listen to this! Yeshua from Natzeret was a man demonstrated to you to have been from God by the powerful works, miracles and signs that God performed through him in your presence. You yourselves know this. 23 This man was arrested in accordance with God’s predetermined plan and foreknowledge; and, through the agency of persons not bound by the Torah, you nailed him up on a stake and killed him!
24 “But God has raised him up and freed him from the suffering of death; it was impossible that death could keep its hold on him.
Reflection Questions:
Jesus told his disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit’s power (Acts 1:8). That power came on the day of Pentecost, a Hebrew harvest festival that fell seven weeks after Passover. On this day of Pentecost, God sent the Holy Spirit in a dramatic way. The Spirit led Peter to boldly preach the saving news of Jesus' victory over death, which had happened just 50 days earlier in that very city.
In John 15:26, Jesus said the Holy Spirit “will testify about me.” That’s just what the Spirit did at Pentecost. Peter’s Spirit-inspired sermon said, “Listen to these words! Jesus the Nazarene was a man whose credentials God proved to you through miracles, wonders, and signs.” How have you sensed the Spirit testifying about Jesus to your heart? When you have a chance to share the good news of Jesus, how can you rely on the Spirit to make your sharing as effective as possible?
- Peter quoted images from Joel 2 that make the book of Revelation scary to many people: “wonders in the heavens,” “blood and fire and smoke.” But he ended the quotation at the point he wanted to stress: “And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How can that message make all of earth’s pressing problems less scary and troubling to you? In what way(s) do you “call on the name of the Lord” today?
Today’s Prayer:
Come, Holy Spirit! Empower me to be more effective as a witness to Jesus who loves me, and who has saved me. Let my peace and my passion draw others to Jesus. Amen.
Insights from Ginger Rothhaas
Ginger Rothhaas is a seminary student at Saint Paul School of Theology and is serving in Congregational Care at the Church of the Resurrection.
I find myself needing to rely on the Holy Spirit for courage daily!
I have been challenged way out of my comfort zone as I live into this calling of attending seminary and participating in ministry. With that, I have become a strong believer in the power of the Holy Spirit. And believe me, I have put it to the test!
I helped with the Vibe service this summer and found myself incredibly nervous on stage. If I had relied on Ginger alone, the prayer would have been a rambling, shaky-voiced, sweaty-palmed, nervous-human-delivered mess!!
Until a few months ago, I was a private spiritual person and a silent pray-er. I never felt “ready” to share my faith…my feeling was always “I will share when I…take another Bible study, complete the how-to-pray class, or (more recently), after I finish seminary.” Does that sound familiar?
Here is what I know to be true – when I allow God’s Holy Spirit to lead me, by saying words such as, “God, take this and do with it what you will. Give me the words you intend for me to say”, something amazing occurs. If I turn it over and let the Holy Spirit go to work, then my sentences are coherent things I have never thought of, my nerves settle down, and I feel that I am an instrument of God’s love to others.
The beautiful news is that the Holy Spirit is available and present every moment of every day. It is up to us to tap into the Spirit, to be open to his presence. We have to allow him into our hearts and minds. We have to say something like, “Holy Spirit, go to work through me!”
Then take a deep breath and…TRUST…that is all it takes. The Holy Spirit is just waiting for our trust. He is an untapped resource to many of us.
Try it this weekend: ask the Holy Spirit to work through you, trust that he will, and notice what happens!
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